What the Heck is a PatioPi?!

noun /pæt.i.oʊ paɪ/ (pat-ee-oh-pie)
A Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W that's connected to a battery pack and Wi-Fi, sitting on my patio, and running the web server that hosts the website you're reading.

No seriously, what's a PatioPi?

I literally just told you.

Why did you do this? Is there something wrong with you?

I think the better question is, why not? I mean, come on, it's a web server running from a patio!! Also yes, I do indeed believe that there is something wrong with me.

Ok, but is there actually a point to this?

Originally, no. PatioPi (formerly known as TreePi) was just a fun little pandemic project that didn't really serve much of a purpose, other than to demonstrate what you can do with a super small, cheap, single-board computer.

Although it didn't happen often, when the subject of PatioPi came up, fellow tech enthusiasts seemed to be both amused by and interested in it, so I thought it might not be a bad idea to get some more information about it online, including some documentation on how someone could set something similar up themselves.

So I can use your guide to setup my own PatioPi?

Yes! Though not just your own PatioPi, the idea is to show you the absolute basics of how to self-host something, whether it's a website, an application, a game server, or something else entirely. This website is meant to be a starting point for those who are interested in learning more about self-hosting, and to show them that it's not as difficult as they might think.